Posts Tagged ‘calypso beads’

Ready for May birthstones?

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

Plan ahead for May birthstones!

There’s one main birthstone for May, emerald.  This is also the seasonal birthstone for Spring, so it’s doubly appropriate.  For an economical emerald look, think about glass beads.  Anything from these metal-core Calypso™ (“Pandora”-style) lampwork beads…

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…to the ever-popular, economical Cosmic Crystal™ bicone…

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…can be an evocative way to play on the emerald theme.  Just search our online store for “emerald”!  Or for “sapphire”, which some consider a birthstone for Taurus.  Now that’s multi-purposing your components!

Speaking of zodiac signs, Gemini’s birthstone is agate.  We always seem to have dozens of varieties of it at Rings & Things’ BeadTour bead shows, and you can always find agate beads in our online store.  A couple of favorites are Botswana agate, like these faceted rounds…

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…and blue lace agate, like this bib:

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Less well-known May gemstones, according to various traditions, are chrysolite, carbuncle, and chalcedony.  For reliable, honest background information, you can look these and many more up in our popular Gemstone Beads Index!

What’s your favorite May birthstone, or birthday jewelry?  Share it in a comment below.  You can even link to pictures of your own creations!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*
So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

♥ lampwork charms

Friday, January 16th, 2009

A sweet new bead just arrived at Rings & Things.  It’s just in time for Valentine’s Day:

This heartthrob of a bead is the newest in our line of Calypso Beads.  (Metal-core lampwork charms.)  Popularized by Troll, Pandora, and other European-style charm beads, this kind of bead looks amazing on bangles, bracelets, chokers and more.  Check out this “Sym-posie-um” set from our Design Gallery:

And since these are large-hole beads, they fit nicely on another recently popular finding, the beadable pen.  This “Sweet Penmanship” pen from our Design Gallery is an example that you could use for writing love letters:

Get Calypso Beads at great prices from Rings & Things, and use your creativity!  What else will you make with these?

Changeable charm: introducing Calypso™ beads

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

Like us, you’ve probably noticed the huge trend of European-style lampwork glass beads with a metal core, used in personalized charm bracelets.  Also like us, you may have noticed the price tag, and wished for something that’s easier on the wallet.  So…cue the music…we’re introducing Calypso beads exclusively from Rings & Things!

Calypso beads from Rings & Things: like Pandora/Troll beads, at a reasonable price

Perfect for custom charm bracelets, these colorful baubles are packed with personality.  They’re imported directly by us.  (They’re a Rings & Things exclusive.)

For glass beads, Calypso beads are on the larger side.  They’re approximately 15×10mm, which means they’re a little over half an inch tall and a little less than half an inch thick.

Calypso beads are Chinese lampwork glass beads with a large sterling silver-lined hole.  The hole size is from 4.4 to 4.6mm, or about 3/16 of an inch.  That’s big enough to run almost any kind of stringing material or cording though, or even multiple strands.  Here’s a sample bracelet using pink Calypso beads:

Calypso bead necklace idea from Rings & Things

Some of these beads have nice little lampwork bumps around the edge, while some are smooth all around.  They sport a range of designs: flowers, stripes, polka dots, or petals.

Customize your designs with new Calypso beads — comparable to Pandora beads and Troll beads, but at a nice price!